Construction Adjudication & Arbitration Services

Construction Adjudication

Adjudication is available by statute to most construction contracts via the Housing Grants Construction and Regeneration (HGCR) Act 1996 and if a dispute arises you have the option to refer the dispute to a construction adjudicator for a temporary remedy. On residential occupier projects, however, adjudication is only available if it is written into the contract, or if the parties agree to adjudication once a dispute has arisen. The statute covers contracts between clients and builders, clients and consultants and builders and sub-contractors.

The adjudication process is private and can be completed in as little as 28 days. Normally each party pays its own costs, win or lose and payment of the adjudicators fees depends on the result. The award is temporarily binding although many disputes go no further as the parties accept the adjudicator’s finding. The losing party has to pay any award arising, even if it is disagreed and can have the dispute reheard at either arbitration or litigation.

If there is no adjudicator named in the relevant contract, the parties can agree an adjudicator or can request a nomination from an Adjudicator Nominating Body (ANB).

Christopher Smart has been an accredited construction adjudicator since 1999 and is on the panels of the RIBA and RICS. He has dealt with many disputes ranging from a few thousand pounds to around three quarters of a million, involving main contractors, sub-contractors, developers, private clients and consultants. They have involved construction defects, non-payment, challenges to contract administration and professional negligence.

Most of his adjudications have been dealt with on a documents-only basis, although he will make site inspections and hold meetings with the parties where circumstances dictate. In most cases the parties have had legal representation, but it is not essential and he is happy to accept appointments where the sums at issue do not merit lawyer involvement.

He is well-equipped to deal fairly with your dispute with a combination of an architect’s broad perspective of construction issues along with twenty years’ experience in dispute resolution. He is a current member of the Adjudication Society.

If you need an experienced adjudicator for your construction dispute, or would like to know more about construction adjudication, contact us.

Construction Arbitration

Construction arbitration is private method of dispute resolution governed by the  Arbitration Act 1996 (The Act). It is available as an alternative to litigation and can be used when it is included in the relevant contract or by agreement between the parties. It has the advantage over litigation of no pre-action protocol and no court fees.

It is a flexible process that can be tuned to the issues and amount in dispute, ranging from documents-only to a full scale hearing that is in most respects similar to a court hearing involving advocacy and cross-examination. The arbitrator is obliged under Section 33 of the Act to avoid unnecessary delay or expense and will endeavour to agree an appropriate procedure with the parties.

Party costs are normally recoverable in arbitration and the losing party will normally be liable to pay the fees of the arbitrator. There are very limited grounds to appeal an arbitrator’s award

If there is no arbitrator named in the contract, the parties can agree an         appointment or can refer to a professional body such as the RIBA or the CIArb for an appointment.

Christopher Smart has been on the RIBA arbitration panel since 2002 and is a Chartered Arbitrator on the CIArb arbitration panel. He has been appointed in disputes involving hearings and site visits as well as those involving documents-only. As one of the few architects currently having Chartered Arbitrator status, he is able to combine technical and legal expertise to ensure a fair outcome for the parties.

In order to augment his arbitration skills, he served for six years on the Hearings Panel of the RIBA Disciplinary Committee and remains as a technical advisor to the Panel. He has also been an Inquirer for the Architect Registration Board and has been an independent advisor to the Construction Industry Council.

If you need an arbitrator for your construction dispute, or would like to know more about construction arbitration, contact us.